Bluffton matmen 3rd at county invite; Kleman three-peats

By Cort Reynolds

Posted by Paula Scott on December 19, 2021 - 7:38pm

The Bluffton High School wrestling team finished third and won two individual weight class titles at the 11-team Allen County Tournament hosted by Delphos St. John's Saturday, December 18.

Pirate junior Thayne Kleman won his third straight Allen County tourney championship in the 113 lbs. weight class. Kleman won all three of his matches by pin.

Pirate senior Micah Minnig won the 138 lbs. bracket crown by default. Minnig also won one match at 132 lbs. by pin to finish fourth.

Perennial power Allen East won the team tournament crown with 257.5 points. Spencerville was second (210), followed by the Pirates (161) in third.

Bluffton senior Dustin Mortimer went 4-0 in pool play with four pins to reach the finals of the 144 lbs. bracket. He lost an 8-3 decision to Ezekiel Burkholder of Bath in the title bout to finish second.

Pirate senior Kaden Basil also surpassed 100 wins for his career as he finished second in the 175 lbs. division. Basil posted a 4-0 pool play record, but lost in the finals by pin to Mason Vonderwell of tourney host St. John's.

Freshman Jett Blackburn took third at 132 lbs. with a 2-2 record and one pin. Classmate Ethan Kohli went 1-4 at 150 lbs. with a pin to finish fifth in his weight class.

Senior Trent Howard finished 3-0 with three pins in pool play at the 215 lbs. bracket. He lost in the semifinals, but rebounded to capture the third-place match by pin to finish 4-1.

Junior Isaiah Mikesell took fifth in the 165 lbs. division by going 2-3 with a pair of pins in the tournament rounds.

Allen East junior Kaden Wireman, the 157 lbs. bracket champion, was named the tournament's Most Valuable Wrestler.

Team results:

1 Allen East 257.5 points

2 Spencerville 210

3 Bluffton 161

4 Lima Senior 134

5 Shawnee 119

6 Bath 117

7 Elida 104.5

8 Delphos Jefferson 64

9 Delphos St. John's 32